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Venezuela’s oil industry has been on the decline for years, beginning with the reign of former President Hugo Chavez. In Hilsrenrath’s opinion, the new sanctions could have an impact on the price of crude oil and the U.S. economy.

“When oil prices are rising it leads to more investment in the United States, to more fracking,” he said. “So in a perverse way what’s going on there could be helping the U.S. economy by holding up oil prices and giving our drillers an incentive to tap our own wells again.”